Fragile Nights
by Cherry-Toxic
Summary: He barely sleeps at all and the Bladebreakers become annoyed when Kai is keeping them awake at night. After whining and complaining for days on end, Tyson, Ray, Max and Kenny learn a shocking, and rather heartbreaking secret about their captain.
1. Chapter 1

**Argh! I have too many idea's for new Beyblade stories running around in my head! **

**So, this idea came to me a few days ago, and I thought I might as well write it up because it's only a two-shot and it'll give me a nice, little break from concentrating so hard on my other fics. Yes; for now this is a two-shot. If I feel motivated enough I may**** carry it on and turn it into a multi-chapter story. But that would only happen after I've completed my two other on-going stories, which could be a long time.**

**This story was **_**actually**_** supposed to be a one-shot, but for some reason I ended up writing way more than I meant to; so yes, it is now a two-shot.**

**Anyway. I wrote this chapter within the space of about four hours. I've had absolutely zero money for about three days, therefore; no food, no alcohol, no cigarettes. No distractions.**

**Please read and leave a review, even if it's just a few words. Go on! Give me a reason to smile! And you can expect the final chapter pretty soon!**

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**Fragile Nights**

Vegas: the city that never sleeps. That's actually pretty accurate. The city seemed to be constantly moving - dancing even - with bright, neon glow-sticks. Even in the middle of the night, the atmosphere that clung to the cool breeze was lively and restless; and it was infectious too. For an adult, Las Vegas was ensnaring. It had everything to make a person believe this is where they could live their American Dream. The clubs and bars, the casinos, the hotels, the celebrities; there were so many attractions. Nothing could compare to the weekends in Vegas. It was something every young person looked forward to, the time when they came of age and could drive to America's playground on a drug-fuelled road-trip just for the hell of it.

To live out '_Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas_'; it was a box that needed to be ticked.

However, despite everything Vegas has to offers, there were five young teenage boys in a hotel room who appeared very disinterested about the city they were currently in. Not to say that the said-teens disliked Las Vegas of that they were spoiled brats who could never be satisfied... it's just that they would have been equally as thrilled as they were in any other part of the United States. It was not any of the afore-mentioned attractions that had brought them to Vegas. No. The thrill they felt within them was for a completely different cause, one that they would have felt anywhere else in this country. The reason for this thrill? Why - that would be because of the American Beyblade Tournament.

Although, when I say _five _teenage boys, I should say four. One member of the group seemed to show a lack of interest in absolutely everything around him.

Back to the story.

Inside the boy's hotel room, no noise from outside was able to creep its way in. That's right. Not the late night traffic of limos and taxis, not the music from nearby clubs or the drunken roars of laughter flying through the air from those who were living up the night-life. Their room was many floors up, you could see out over the entire stretch of the city from their balcony. Plus the glass on the window was very thick, giving the teens the complete silence needed for a peaceful nights sleep. No light managed to enter the room either, despite the all around glow Vegas emitted. And that was because the thickest and most heaviest black curtains fell from the ceiling all the way down to the floor in front of each window. Yeah, this hotel had all the necessities for a relaxing vacation; delicious food, king-size hot-tubs, luxury furniture and giant, comfortable beds.

So if the hotel was so great, why weren't any of the five boys asleep at this late hour?

Well, if you take a step inside the room, it became quite obvious. Now, any noise from outside the room was nothing more than a tiny tremor in the air, however, any noise from **inside** their room, well that's simply a different matter.

Within the room, there was a small kitchen area with a breakfast table, a living area with sofas, armchairs and a large TV, plus 3 double beds, in which were four boys, two with a bed each, and the other two were sharing the bed on the right. Each one of these boys was a member of the Japanese Beyblading team, and right now, each one of them had lines of exhaustion and frustration appearing on heir foreheads.

One of the occupants on the right bed sucked in air though his teeth before rolling over and breathing out through his nose in an angry sigh. As he rolled over, a mop of his loose, long, raven-coloured hair obscured his vision. In one quick, annoyed and flustered swipe, he raised his hand, which had been tightly gripping his pillow, and swept the offending hair away from his eyes. He sighed again as he saw two tired, sky-blue eyes looking at him.

"You okay, Max?" the raven-haired teen asked, knowing very well that his American friend sharing his bed was far from okay. He watched as those tired eyes closed before slowly opening again.

"I suppose..." Max muttered before stifling yawn and shuffling lower underneath their quilt.

"Yeah right," came a voice in a very pissed-off manner from their left.

Max moaned slightly before placing his head underneath his pillow and pulling the quilt even higher, knowing a there was an argument coming, an argument he was too tired to get involved in or try to prevent. The raven-haired boy sat up quickly, despite being as tired as anyone else in the room.

"Tyson," he growled as low and quiet as he could, "don't start, not now."

The boy on the furthest bed away, pushed up against the left end wall where the door to the balcony was, sat up quickly, and although it was dark, even the smallest amounts of light were enough to show the fury etched on this boys face.

"Why not Ray?" the boy, Tyson, hissed venomously, sending a glare over to one of the sofas which had its back towards the beds, before he looked back at the other boy, "why should we have to put up with his selfish behaviour?"

Max crawled out from beneath his pillow, and slowly sat up with a sigh, locking eyes which the teen who he shared the bed with, Ray. Ray met his gaze, both understanding what was on each others minds. Max leaned back against the head-board. It was too late and they were all too tired for an argument to break out... but he couldn't help but feel that Tyson had a point. Max's eyes fell onto the back of the same sofa that Tyson had glared at.

Although none of them could see him, one member of their group was currently lying on the sofa, intending to sleep there. None of the others knew why. When they had arrived the day before, like at any other hotel they had stayed at, there was always a competition over who would get which bed and who would share.

_**-- Flashback --**_

"I CALL THIS BED!"

Tyson, a thirteen year old teen with a loud mouth, forced himself into their new hotel room as soon as he heard the lock click. He pounded over the furthest bed away and jumped on it, bouncing up and down, watching as the other four slowly entered the room.

"Well I want to be furthest away from your snoring then," the blonde haired boy, Max stated, striding forwards. He dumped his bag on the first bed he reached, "so I choose this one!"

Ray looked up at his two friends who had already claimed their beds. He had not yet had a bed to himself since travelling with the Bladebreakers. He shuffled over to the middle bed.

"Well then, I guess I'll have -"

"Mine!" squeaked a voice, and Ray was almost knocked off his feet as a small, but surprisingly fast and agile, brown-haired boy zoomed fast him, his rucksack colliding with Ray's leg. Ray blinked, seeing the boy was now kneeling on the middle bed with his rucksack laid next to him. He looked almost nervous under Ray's gaze.

Ray laughed, "okay, you got their first, Kenny. It's yours!"

Ray turned to face the closest bed, which Max was sat on. The sugar-happy blonde wouldn't mind in the slightest if Ray shared with him.

"Man Ray!" Tyson exclaimed unbelievingly, after he finally stopped bouncing up and down and was now sat cross-legged on his own bed, "you are far to nice for your own good! If I was you, I'd just shove the Chief off and claim the bed as my own!"

Ray chuckled but didn't say anything, instead he watched as Kenny (AKA The Chief) turned bright red and cried, "Tyson!" Ray shook his head and settled his bag down onto the bed he would share with Max, who was already unpacking. For some unknown reason, Kenny seemed to have an extremely unnatural dislike with sharing a bed with someone. It could be because the small but smart boy was embarrassed at the fact that he slept snuggled up to his laptop, or that every now and again, he kicked out during his sleep, as Ray had discovered on their second night of travelling when he had been booted awake several times.

"Aw! Come on Chief!" Tyson said, throwing one of his pillows at the smaller boy, "Y'know I love you really!" The navy-haired teen then looked up with a frown. That frown however, soon turned into a mischievous smile, one which Ray noticed and took it as a sign that Tyson was about to do something stupid.

Predictable as always, Tyson swung his legs around and silently lifted himself from his bed. Ray and Max exchanged a look which basically said, "here we go," as their team-mate slowly crept over to the balcony door close to his bed where a certain dual-haired, brooding teen was standing, looking out at the view of the city.

"Kaiiiiiii!" Tyson sang slyly, gaining nothing more than a brief glance in his direction from the team-captain, though it wasn't a surprise; the older boy barely reacted to anything his companions did or said. The lack of response did not sway Tyson at all though, as he was now stood very close to the other boy, so close in fact he was able to lean onto his tip-toes and whisper in his ear; "you can sleep with me tonight!"

And with that said, Tyson moved a few inches closer, with a huge smirk on his face and raised both his arms to mid-height, snaking them around the older teens waist, although he wasn't quite touching him.

As though a little alarm went of inside Kai's head, his own arm shot out and seized Tyson's right wrist which was just passing in front of his abdomen. Despite the sharp and unnaturally quick movement, Kai's features remained impassive. Unlike Tyson's, who's eyes widened and a small, strangled sound escaped his throat in surprise. It didn't help that Kai was still holding his wrist is a vice-grip. Slowly and with unfaltering resolute, Kai turned his head to face Tyson. Although his face was, like always, completely blank and unreadable, his crimson eyes portrayed annoyance.

Tyson grinned sheepishly, tugging his right arm slightly, hoping Kai would let him off and release his wrist. No luck. He glanced at the other three boys, silently begging for help. However, all he received were three _'you-got-yourself-into-it' _shrugs.

"Tyson," Kai said coldly, forcing the younger teen cower with just his icy, yet smooth, speech, "if you step into my personal space one more time; I will dismantle every one of your limbs."

And a simple as that, Kai let go of Tyson's wrist and swiftly turned his back on the younger teen and walked over to the sofa where he had earlier placed his travel-bag. Tyson pulled a face at Kai's retreating form, whilst rubbing his tender wrist.

"Just for that you, can sleep on the couch!"

_**-- Flash --**_

Their first day in Las Vegas was almost over, and the Bladebreaker's were all lying comfortably in their beds. Well, all except Kai that is. The crimson-eyed boy had decided to sleep on the couch after everything, even when Tyson said he didn't mind if they shared. When asked for his reasoning as to why he decided the sleep on the hard sofa instead of the cosy beds, Kai had combined two of his most common replies and said in a monotone voice, "hn, mind your own business."

Still, it was more than what he usually says.

Most of team had drifted off into sweet oblivion, and if not they were probably close to it. It had been twenty minutes since Kai had heard any sort of movement from his team-mates, so quietly and cautiously, he sat up onto his knees and looked over the back of the sofa. He peered at each one of them, and guessing from their shallow breathing, they were all indeed, asleep. Giving a small, grateful sigh, the teen pushed his covers away and leaned over the side of the sofa to find where he'd put his day-time clothes.

Despite the darkness, he found them easily, having purposely placed them there earlier, knowing he would be going for a midnight walk... like he always did. Kai found that most places where so much nicer at night-time. There weren't many people around, it was peaceful and he found it easier to appreciate the little things like - ah - _silence!_

Slipping his trainers onto his feet, he stood up, and, taking one last glance at his team-mates, he crept over to the door and snuck out.

_**-- Flash --**_

"Kai went out last night," Tyson said with a smirk, which only widened as Kai's head shot up and he fixed a deathly glare as the bluenette.

It was 8am on what was going to be their first **full** day in Vegas, having only arrived in the late afternoon the previous day. The Bladebreaker's, plus the head of the BBA, Mr. Dickinson, were all sat around a circular table, having breakfast. Only everyone seemed to have gone still after Tyson's remark.

Ray, Max and Kenny glanced from Tyson, to Kai and then to Mr. Dickinson, wondering which one of the three would speak first. Now, the whole team and Mr. Dickinson, knew very well that Kai often disappeared for a few hours at night sometimes, and although there was always some worry, it was something they had had to get used to. It wasn't as if Kai listened when one of them expressed their concern about him, only fourteen years of age, wondering off into the dark where anything could happen.

However, on the aeroplane and coach to Vegas, Mr. Dickinson could not have stressed it enough that none of the boys (and he always seemed to look pointedly at Kai here) were to wander off on their own or go out late at night, even if they were together.

Mr. Dickinson sighed and clasped his hands together on the table, looking directly at Kai, who knew that the old man was staring at him, but decided not to meet his gaze. So he continued to glare at Tyson. The bluenette was still smirking, he knew Kai would get him for this later but for now, just seeing the fury in those crimson eyes made it worth it. So he sat there and smirked, silently celebrating his victory.

Mr. Dickinson, realising that Kai wasn't going to be the first to speak up, cleared his throat and spoke softly to the teenager sat opposite him.

"Kai? Did you go out last night?"

Kai dragged his gaze from Tyson, and looked Mr. Dickinson in the eye. Despite how much he wanted to ignore the old man and instead just throttle Tyson, he showed nothing on the outside. Leaning back in his chair casually, he crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow.

"Yes. So what?" he answered back in a lazy drawl, knowing full well that the BBA head was finding his attitude very irritating. He was proved correct when he watched as Mr. Dickinson closed his eyes for a brief moment and inhaled deeply.

"Even when I told you that none of you boys were to go out alone, especially at night?" the elder asked, reopening his eyes.

"I vaguely remember you drilling that into me, yes."

Ray mentally cringed at how casual Kai sounded. The others, including Tyson, the one who brought the subject up in the first place, were looking more and more uncomfortable. They had never witnessed Mr. Dickinson shout or get angry, in fact, he was a kind old man who didn't seem to be capable of getting mad; but it was obvious that Kai was really testing him now. Before Mr. Dickinson could even open his mouth to reply, Max stood up sharply with a over-sized and rather forced looking smile on his face.

"Who's up for seconds?" he said cheerfully, to which Kenny and Tyson responded with the same over-enthusiasm. Standing from their seats and hurrying over to the breakfast buffet table with their plates quicker than blinking. Ray sat there stupidly for a few seconds longer, glancing from Kai to Mr. Dickinson. After a few very awkward seconds, Ray got the impression they were waiting for him to leave as well. He got stiffly to his feet, not that he particularly wanted to listen to the argument that was no doubt about to unfold.

He was only a few steps away when his sharp feline-enhanced hearing picked up Mr. Dickinson's hushed voice.

"I'll have none of the attitude, Kai!" he said sharply, while Kai scowled, "while you are travelling and competing in Beyblade tournaments, I am responsible for you, and therefore when I tell you to do or don't do something, I expect a little respect and for you to follow what I wish. Do you understand me?"

For some reason, Ray would have loved to have seen the expression on Kai's face round about now. Very rarely did someone have the guts to put Kai in his place, and it was something Ray, and the rest of the team, wished would happen more often. Not that they hated their team-leader; more like they disliked him when his attitude flared up. Ray slowed down so he would be able to hear Kai's response, which was, surprisingly, mumbled unhappily.

"I just went for a walk..."

Mr. Dickinson sighed, "I know, Kai m'boy. And I know things are difficult; but you must understand that I am your guardian while you are away, and this part of Las Vegas can host a lot of troublemakers, especially at night."

Kai grunted in response, to which Mr. Dickinson chuckled slightly.

"Good boy. Just promise me you won't go out at night again?"

Ray didn't hear whether or not Kai made the promise, because while he had been trying to hard to listen to their conversation as he was slowly getting further away from the table, Ray had lost concentration on where he was walking, and at that moment he collided with a large, beefy man who turned around and hollered abuse at the bewildered teen.

Ignoring the fat idiot, Ray turned around to see that Kai had left the Breakfast table. He frowned in annoyance as he heard Tyson come over and jump to his defence, roaring insults back at the man despite the huge difference in size and weight.

_**-- End Flashback --**_

Even though Ray hadn't heard whether or not Kai promised not to go out again, it was likely that he had. For the dual-haired blader had laid down on the sofa about two hours ago and had not moved since. Ray probably would have felt relived, maybe happy, that Kai wouldn't be wondering the streets at midnight, however, right now, he wasn't able to feel such things for the older teen.

And that reason was the same one as to why none of the boys were asleep.

Music. Loud, guitar-shredding, drum-bashing music was spitting from Kai's head-phones on the sofa, and it was preventing all of them from drifting off to sleep. It was almost 1am, almost two hours of hearing Kai's heavy music, only silencing when they heard their captain change the disc in his walkman, allowing the other teens to know he was still awake.

By now, everyone was tired, Tyson and Ray were annoyed, and (mainly) Tyson was angry. He was still sat up in his bed, glaring daggers at the back of the sofa. Tyson couldn't help but feel slightly pissed at himself. _He _was the one who told Mr. Dickinson during breakfast that Kai had sneaked of at night; if he had just kept his mouth shut then Kai probably would have disappeared again tonight, allowing them all to fall asleep in his absence. Tyson shook his head angrily. _What was he thinking? It wasn't his fault Kai was a selfish, grouch who didn't care if he was keeping the others awake with his stupid music!_

"Just leave it for tonight," Ray begged quietly, not even understanding why he was sticking up for Kai, "we'll talk to him tomorrow about it."

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**Well this isn't a cliffhanger, but like I said before, I hadn't planned on there being two chapters so I didn't really know where to end this one. Besides I have to hurry, or I'm going to be late for work.**

**Reviews are welcome and wanted!**

**The next and final chapter will be posted soon. And then you can expect an update from one of my other stories (if you are reading them that it).**

**Phoenix-Falling**


	2. Chapter 2

**Okay. I said that this was a two-shot, yes? That was before I wrote so much and didn't manage to squeeze everything I want into this chapter.**

**So, it was a one-shot, a two-shot... and now it's a THREE-SHOT!**

**I have to say thank you all for the reviews! I got so many good comments. I thought that cause this is only a little story that people wouldn't bother leaving a review, but I grateful to all who did.**

**Please review and tell me what you think!**

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**Fragile Nights**

**Chapter 2**

Max raised his hand to his mouth and tired to stifle a very loud and long yawn without much success. It was 9:15am, and they were enjoying their second Breakfast in Vegas. Well, saying 'enjoying' is a bit of a lie. Of the group, only Mr. Dickinson seemed to be fully appreciating his food. Even Tyson was eating much slower than usual, in his current drowsy condition, raising a forkful of food seemed to take just a little too much effort.

As Max yawned, Ray glanced at him through the corner of his eye. The Neko wasn't eating at all. Instead he sat leaning with his right elbow on the table and his face in his right hand. He didn't realise he was swaying ever so slightly as he stared with heavy eyelids at the wall opposite him. To his left on the circular table, was Kenny. The computer wizard didn't look like he be cracking down on his laptop anytime soon, as he was playing with the food on his plate with his fork, and like Max, was stifling a yawn every few minutes.

Next to Kenny was Kai. Kai was the only one of the group, sans Mr. Dickinson, who showed no tiredness. He sat up straight, his right leg crossed over his left, eyes closed and a cup of coffee in his hand. He would open his eyes every now and again, and take a look at each of his team-mates, frowning at them disapprovingly. He found it hard to believe that they were so tired this morning. He would always have to use a fair amount of effort dragging Tyson out of bed, but that morning when he came back to their room at 8am after going for a morning stroll; he couldn't believe it when they were all still in bed! He even had to whack Ray with a pillow, and the Chinese teen was very rarely still in bed past 8.

Kai took a sip of his coffee, and leaned back into his chair comfortably. He stayed like this only for a few seconds before his body tensed unconsciously, hairs prickling as he sensed someone was watching him. He opened his eyelids smoothly, glancing to his left, past Mr. Dickinson who was sat next to him, his eyes meeting with Tyson's, who had not been watching him, but glaring at him. Kai's brow furrowed in annoyance at the younger teen who had not turned away when he realised Kai was staring back. Tyson was glaring with determination, even when Kai's simply annoyed look turned into his own deathly glare, he refused to look away, despite the icy wave that emitted from the Russian teen and washed over him, chilling him to the bones.

Tyson got a slight shock however, when Kai closed his eyes and looked away before downing the rest of the coffee in his cup and standing up.

"I expect you all in the training room in half an hour," he stated, glancing briefly at them all and then leaving the table, his long white scarf trailing behind him.

Tyson continued to glare after him while the other three barely managed to nod. Kenny went back to playing with his food, while Ray and Max simply lounged in their chairs, the same thought running through their minds. What if they just went back upstairs and went to bed? Sure, Kai would roast them for it later, but at least then they'd have the energy to argue back.

Mr. Dickinson looked at the four remaining boys. Never before had seen them so drained. And they hadn't done anything yet! Tyson had never had just one serving at any meal before, especially not breakfast. And Ray would never sit with such a slouch in his posture, he had a little more pride than that. Max wasn't as cheerful as usual, and he barely put more than four words together at once, which was highly unusual. And as for Kenny, he was normally typing away frantically on Dizzi, working on his next breakthrough in Beyblade development.

Mr. Dickinson placed his cup of tea back down on the table.

"So would any of you boys care to explain why there seems to be no spirit here?" he asked, and the boys turned to look at him. The morning had shown an obvious change in their behaviours, but none of them seemed to want to explain. None but Tyson that is.

"It's because of our wonderful, mighty captain, that's why!" he snapped a bit more aggressively than he intended to. Mr. Dickinson looked at the boy sat on his left with wide eyes.

"He didn't go out again, did -"

"Oh no, he stayed in," Tyson said bitterly, slouching back in his chair, his bottom lip curling and he gained a confused look from Mr. Dickinson. Tyson sighed irritably, "he was listening to his walkman for about four hours straight. And he listens to those _really_ heavy bands that scream and stuff. I didn't fall asleep until after three."

"Lucky you," Max murmured, "I was still up at four when he **finally** switched it off..."

"My point _is_," Tyson continued, folding his arms, "I wish he **had** buggered off, at least then we could of got a decent nights sleep."

Although, no one openly expressed agreement to what Tyson had said, it was obvious to all, even Mr. Dickinson, that they had all wished the same thing. Kai always woke them up at seven, then he would disappear for an hour or so and then come back to usually drag Tyson out of bed. During the day, he was a real slave-driver, working them like dogs and only allowing them an hours lunch break before he was pushing them all back in the direction of the training room. Although after dinner, they would usually just relax and watch movies, they would rarely go to bed before 11pm, and even then Kai would always have a light on for another hour or so which would keep them awake. But still they normally managed to get a sufficient seven/eight hours sleep, which they all felt was enough (except Tyson). But today, none of them had got more than five hours sleep.

Mr. Dickinson picked up his cup and took another sip of coffee, mulling over his thoughts.

"Well," he said after a while, licking his lips, "have you spoke to Kai about it?"

"And have him bite our heads off?" Tyson mumbled.

Mr. Dickinson sighed. He silently agreed with Tyson here. He knew all too well just how difficult Kai could be, though the 14 year old was less ignorant when speaking with an adult or someone he considered intelligent and mature. However, unfortunately for the Bladebreakers, Kai saw them as neither, therefore he was more ignorant towards his team-mates than he was to others.

"I suppose I could have a word with him," Mr. Dickinson concluded, draining the remaining contents of his cup. A sigh of relief seemed to spread through the group like a Mexican wave as Mr. Dickinson pushed his chair back and stood up.

"Thanks Mr. D," Ray said gratefully, giving the BBA chairman a thankful smile. Mr. Dickinson nodded in response and left the table.

* * *

Kai stood inside the training dish, setting his beyblade into his launcher, vainly trying to ignore the group of people that stood on the other side of the large glass doors, goggling at him in awe. He screwed up his face in annoyance as he tried to focus on aiming his launch but was disturbed by the sound of girly, squealing. Out of the corner of his eye he glanced at the doors and saw that more people had joined the already-large crowd and were whispering (**loud** whispering mind you) amongst themselves.

Taking a deep breathe, Kai urged himself to ignore their childish antics. Hooking his index and middle finger through the hoop on his rip-chord, he aimed his blade at the right-hand side of the bey-dish on the slant. Ready to launch.

However at that moment, the doors banged open, and Kai almost jumped out of his skin. He turned around to see two girls sprawled on the floor just in front of the doors, and that all the other people who had previously been watching him had now ran away. He glared fiercely at the two girls around his age, who were blushing uncontrollably.

"Yes?" he snarled at them as they climbed to their feet, the smaller of the two backing away a bit, her face looking very red compared to her almost-white hair that was scrapped back into high pig-tails.

"W-we were... I - erm..." the taller girl, with long brown hair, said, tumbling over her words. She looked around frantically. She was speaking with _Kai Hiwatari!_ She'd dreamed of this moment for so long (well a few weeks) but now that the time was here, she didn't know what to say. Embarrassed, her cheeks heated up again.

"_Yes?_" Kai hissed venomously at the two again, annoyed by their sudden intrusion and also because they didn't seem to have any reason for barging in. Though he was well aware that the two girls in front of him had probably not intended to come flying into the room. Someone probably pushed them.

The taller girl, feeling extremely humiliated in front of her crush, turned around and pointed at the smaller girl.

"She wanted me to tell you that she loves you!" she cried, and without giving either Kai nor the small girl a chance to blink, she sprinted from the room.

Kai, completely unfazed, just scowled at the small girl, who looked as though she wanted to die where she stood. Seconds past and the girl made no attempt to move, instead she stared, frozen to the spot, at Kai, knowing she had just been shown up by her best friend in front of her idol.

Kai mentally sighed. He walked towards the girl, who's eyes seemed to widen with every step closer he got, until he was stood directly in front of her. He leaned over so his face was level with hers.

"_Scoot_."

The girl let out what sounded like a sob, turned on her heel and darted out of the room, her pig-tails flying behind her. The doors slammed shut, and the girl glanced back through the glass and Kai saw a few tears fall down her face. He did nothing but roll his eyes.

"Stupid girl," he muttered, going back to the bey-dish, with the happy knowledge that his 'fans' had disappeared. Or at least he thought they had. However, his launch was interrupted when he heard the glass doors to his right open again.

"What _now? - _Oh!"

Mr. Dickinson raised his eyebrows, as Kai looked surprised to see him.

"Mr. Dickinson," Kai acknowledged, nodding his head in what someone may have believed was greetings, but instead it was an apology. Mr. Dickinson knew better than to expect a verbal apology from the Bladebreaker captain, so he let it slip, not that it was a major issue anyway.

"Kai, I need a word," Mr. Dickinson started and Kai cocked up an eyebrow as a gesture for him to continue. He swallowed quickly, "well the other boys are upset this morning because last night they say they were kept awake..."

Kai stood there and listened to Mr. Dickinson tell him exactly what his team-mates had said. In any other situation where the four younger boys were complaining about him, Kai wouldn't have given the slightest damn, he would have continued doing whatever he felt like and ignored their childish whining. But now, as Mr. Dickinson spoke, Kai's eyes fell to his feet and he hung his head slightly. Mr. Dickinson noticed this.

"Kai?" he asked, coming closer to the teen. Kai did not look up but seemed to clench his fists into tight balls. Mr. Dickinson cautiously placed a hand on Kai's shoulders, feeling the teen tense beneath his grip and quickly pull away. It was as Kai moved away from him that Mr. Dickinson noticed the red flush across the boys cheeks.

He sighed, "you've got nothing to be ashamed of, Kai."

Kai's head snapped up, the blush still evident on his face, however he didn't seem to care at that moment. He glared intensely at the older man.

"What would you know?" he snapped rather hurtfully.

Mr. Dickinson quickly stepped forward, surprisingly fast for a man of his age, and it took Kai off guard; because he was not able to dodge when elder seized his wrists, not tightly, but firmly.

"I know..." Mr. Dickinson began, looking straight into those startled, crimson eyes, "...that not one of your fellow team-mates would look down on you in any way - if they _knew,_ that is."

Kai hid his surprise at Mr. Dickinson's words and turned his innocent stare into a deadly glare. He hissed, "well they don't _know_. And it's going to stay that way!" His tone was threatening, and although he knew that Mr. Dickinson did not find him particularly intimidating, it was the only way he knew how to act in these circumstances.

And Mr. Dickinson knew also, that in the circumstances, there was no reasoning with Kai. The teen would anger himself so much he would them turn a deaf ear on anything you had to say. Selective hearing. Mr. Dickinson sighed in defeat; for now, he would leave Kai to himself.

* * *

That night Kai stared at his walkman for a long time as he lay on the sofa. It was half eleven.

Max and Kenny had gone to bed around 8pm and were asleep within minutes. Tyson and Ray had stayed up and watched TV on low volume until eleven, when they had switched it off and climbed into their own beds. Kai had sat with them for a few hours while they watched a couple of movies. Kai himself had not actually paid attention to whatever was on the television, instead, strangely enough, he had been discreetly watching Ray and Tyson through the corners of his eye. It wasn't difficult to notice the signs of exhaustion. Apart from the obvious yawning every few seconds; their postures were slumped, their eyelids kept sliding closed and their facial expressions - well they just said it all.

Although he hadn't, and would never, openly express this, Kai had felt a pang of guilt as he'd watched them. Especially whenever they stood up and moved around, like when Tyson went to the bathroom and he drowsily walked into the doorframe. Or when Ray went to get a drink and missed his glass and poured the lemonade all over the counter instead.

It didn't help that none of them had spoke to him all day. They hadn't argued with him during training, and that caused him to half-heartedly yell at them to pick up the pace. They hardly spoke with one another let alone Kai throughout dinner and up until they'd gone to bed. All of which contributed to the guilt and uneasiness that Kai felt.

The guilt which turned into embarrassment. Why embarrassment? Well, it was something that Kai didn't even like to think about.

Kai sighed as he stared longingly at his walkman. He thought maybe he could listen to some music after he made sure all the others were fast asleep. But Tyson and Ray had only gone to bed half an hour ago and Kai was positive they weren't asleep yet.

So for now, Kai was having to make do with reading. Before he had laid down, Kai had unplugged one of the lamps next to the TV, attached it to an extension cable and placed the lamp on the floor next to his bed/sofa; giving him the light he needed to read. However, unbeknownst to Kai, the light from the lamp was causing a silent argument behind the sofa.

Over Kenny's bed, Ray watched as Tyson was gritting his teeth in frustration. Tyson was glaring at the back of the sofa like he had done the night before. When he looked away and locked gaze with Ray, he frowned as the Neko shook his head, begging him not to loose his temper. A plea with Tyson ignored.

"For GOD'S sake!" he finally erupted, causing several different reactions. Ray slapped his hand over his eyes, Kai jumped slightly (though no one saw), and Kenny and Max awoke with startled gasps.

"Tyson!" Ray moaned, earning a glare from the stormy-eyed blader.

Kai pushed himself up and onto his knees looking over the back of the couch towards the beds to see what the commotion was. Though as soon as he straightened his back, he had to duck down again as a pillow came flying in his direction. The pillow soared over the sofa and landed with a soft '_plump_' on the coffee table. Kai sat back up and scowled at Tyson, who made effort to hide the fact that he was the one who threw it.

"How immature," Kai remarked.

"Immature!" Tyson stormed, his voice raising and a vein popping out on his forehead, "you are so unbelievably selfish!"

Kai blinked slowly, not quite knowing what to make of this sudden accusation. Despite everything, he took it, as he always did, as a challenge.

"What, Granger, may I ask have I done that you would consider selfish?" he inquired icily.

Max and Kenny looked at each other worriedly, while Ray felt like banging his head on the headboard. He wasn't going to deny that he found it a little more difficult trying to fall asleep with a lamp on, but Tyson was blowing everything way out of proportion. Not only that, but he'd woken Kenny and Max, who still looked completely exhausted.

Tyson actually got out of his bed and stood in a fighting stance, pointing an accusing finger at Kai.

"You kept us all awake last night with your rubbish music," he snarled.

"Yes, and you were such a baby you didn't have to guts to say anything about it," Kai retorted, feeling a whirl of anger rising in his chest listening to Tyson shriek at him.

"Urgh! You can't take responsibility for anything can you, Kai?!" Tyson snapped, "you may be inhuman, but maybe you could at least _try_ to understand that the rest of us need sleep! And we can't do that with that damn light on!"

"Oh, shut-the_-fuck_-up Tyson!"

Kenny and Max gasped while Ray sat up properly, eyes wider than normal. Tyson gaped with his mouth slightly open. _Never_ had Kai swore before, especially not at them. But at that moment, Kai looked as though he didn't care in the least. He sent one final glare at Tyson before he laid back down on the sofa.

"If the light bothers you that much," Kai advised, "then pull your fucking blanket over your fat head!"

* * *

The silence that filled the breakfast table the next morning was almost suffocating. Tyson and Kai did not look at each other once, in fact, Kai had made Ray wake Tyson up that morning, not giving any reason as to why, though it was more than obvious to the other three. Kai had eaten his breakfast hurriedly, although all he had was a couple of slices of toast, and left the table as quickly as he could, more than likely heading to the training room.

Max, Ray and Kenny had managed to get a small conversation going although Tyson didn't join in. Instead he ate his fry-up slower than usual with a look that suggested he was in deep thought written across his face. Mr. Dickinson had noticed this second change to the boys attitude, even if their appetites had come back. He sighed and placed his cup down.

"What's happened now?" Mr. Dickinson asked, raising an eyebrow knowingly. Sure enough, as he guessed, the remaining four boys exchanged glances.

"Bit of an argument last night," Tyson mumbled. Yes, Tyson was feeling a bit guilty for last night. More for waking Max and Kenny up than anything else, but he did feel a _little_ bad for yelling at Kai over a _lamp._ And even then, after Kai had yelled back, Tyson actually feel asleep quite quickly, only adding to his guilt.

"Please elaborate?" Mr. Dickinson said, though Tyson decided to remain silent.

"Kai kept us awake for a bit last night," Ray answered for Tyson, "it wasn't half as bad, but I guess it got under Tyson's skin a bit."

Ray gave Tyson an apologetic look. He wasn't trying to get Tyson in trouble, but he just didn't like keeping things from the BBA Head, after all, Mr' Dickinson was the one who formed the team, he should have a right to know how things are within the group.

Mr. Dickinson opened his mouth to speak, only he was cut across.

"Why did you make Kai team leader, Mr. Dickinson?" Max asked suddenly, taking everyone by surprise. The blonde sighed a little, "I don't mean to sound awful, and I know as well as anyone that Kai is a awesome beyblader... but I just don't get why you'd make him captain."

"Kai is a _very _experienced -"

"Experienced or not," Tyson broke in, though he seemed to be mumbling a bit, "shouldn't a captain always be supportive of his team?" he was met with a nod from Mr. Dickinson, "well his attitude over the past couple of days has been anything but supportive. All we want is to get a decent nights sleep..."

"I don't get how he manages to keep going all day," Kenny interjected, changing the subject a little, "it seems almost humanly impossible. From what I've seen... he appears to sleep for five hours at the utter **maximum** every night! And it's not like he eats a lot either..."

Mr. Dickinson cautiously pulled a handkerchief from his breast pocket and dabbed his forehead. As he listened to the youngsters talk about their captain like this, the senior suddenly felt himself become extremely protective over Kai, so much so he didn't want to have to hear them talking badly about him.

"Boys listen," Mr. Dickinson interrupted Tyson bitter speech at how he believed Kai was a robot. Tyson stopped speaking and they looked at the elder, "there are some things about Kai's personality which you may not understand at all, but believe when I say that there are reason for the way he acts."

Oh boy. He'd triggered their curiosity now.

"What do you mean by that?"

"_What?_

"Tell us Mr. D!"

"Did something happen to him in the past?"

Mr. Dickinson looked at Ray who asked the last question, "you could say that..." he said quietly, taking a small sip of his tea, glancing at the wall opposite him and choosing to not look at anything in particular. They waited for a few minutes, hoping for some sort of an explanation. They didn't receive one.

"Mr. D..." Max said after a while, "you - you brought it up..."

Mr. Dickinson sighed, once again, placing his cup back down on the table. A movement he seemed to have repeated a lot over the past two days.

"Kai doesn't want you boys - or anyone else for that matter - to know this," Mr. Dickinson said slowly, "and as much as I respect his decision; I feel - I _know_ you four deserve the truth..."

Clasping his hands together on the table, Mr. Dickinson eyed each one of them, as if trying to detect some sort of falseness about them. They each seemed to lean forward slightly, although their faces did not show eagerness, more like expressions of concern. After a few moment silence, in which time everyone seemed to hold their breath, Mr. Dickinson exhaled loudly.

"Kai has somniphobia."

Mr. Dickinson noted how Ray and Kenny's eyes seemed to widen considerably at hearing this, were as Max and Tyson just looked bemused.

"Somniphobia is a very persistent and abnormal fear of sleep," Mr. Dickinson continued, "Kai has had it since he was around the age of nine. And it is the reason as to why he _forces_ himself to stay awake at night, and also the reason why he wakes up early."

Mr. Dickinson watched as the puzzlement seemed to spread through the four boys like a disease. Frowns appearing on their faces as they thought about what had been said, racking over their memories and replaying the scenes of those nights when they had seen Kai wander out of the room at midnight or just simply sitting in his bed refusing to sleep...

It all seemed to fit into place, but at the same time, it just seemed so unusual, so _bizarre, _that they were unable to process it fully.

"B-But... how? I mean... it just," Ray was the first to voice his confusion. Mr. Dickinson raised his clasped hands up and rested them under his chian, whislt taking a deep breath.

"When Kai was eight, his father died from cancer," Mr. Dickinson explained, all the attention focused directly on his sorrowful face, "and his mother's health declined after that as well, she died when he was nine. B-Because Kai was so young, he was told by the social workers that his mum and dad had gone to sleep..."

Tyson closed his eyes and actually turned his head away. It just felt too awful to comprehend. Biting his lip furiously, he forced himself to hold back tears. Something which Max seemed completely unable to do. Silently thanking that there weren't many people left in the dining hall, he sniffed heavily, feeling tears leaking from each eye.

Mr. Dickinson closed his eyes for a moment. Seeing these boys, who he treated as if they were his own, mentally suffering with this news was something he did not enjoy watching. However, for Kai's sake... they needed to know.

"They told him that they'd gone to sleep, and they wouldn't be waking up."

* * *

**Man, I just love giving Kai a hard time don't I?**

**Anyway, this is up way later than I expected, and I'm really sorry about that. I've been so tired this week. Just mooching around in my pyjamas eating cereal out of the box... yeah. it's been one of **_**those**_** weeks.**

**Anyway, please review! And the LAST (I mean it this time) chapter should be up soon.**

**Thanks guys!**

**Phoenix-falling**


	3. Chapter 3

**FOR GOD'S SAKE! IT'S A FOUR-SHOT!**

**Yes, once again, I wrote twice as much as I bloody planned!**

**As for the reviews, I can't thank you guys enough. I got so much feedback and it is a real motivation.**

**Anyway, enough talk from me. Here's the next chapter.**

* * *

There was a pained silence around the table, one which nobody wanted to deal with but all words seemed to fail. All that could be managed from the four young boys were deep breaths before they would open and close their mouths in attempt to say something, anything.

Tyson was still looking away, his eyes lingering on the floor. He swallowed a lump in his throat but it only seemed to come back seconds later, bigger than before. He felt physically sick, all the guilt he felt before doubled in size. How must have Kai felt when Tyson yelled at him? Called him selfish and inhuman?

Tyson remembered back in China when Max had confided in him that he was a little bit afraid of the dark. He remembered the flash of desperation flicker through those sky-blue eyes. He was so nervous when night came around that he felt like he had to tell someone. What would Max have done if Tyson had reacted badly to hearing that?

Tyson closed his eyes. Kai had swore at him and ignored him since last night. And... and all because Tyson had released his anger at him over something as trivial as a light.

"Boys..." Mr. Dickinson said after a while, noticing how the four young teens seemed lost in their own thoughts. Slowly, they each turned to look at the wrinkled face which was lined with sadness. With their attention back on him, Mr. Dickinson continued hesitantly.

"I need you four to promise me that you won't... tease him or make fun of him."

He was met with four horrified expressions.

"S-Sir! - Mr. Dickinson!" Ray stammered in a hurt voice, "you should know; we w-would never...!"

"I know you would never _intentionally_ tease him, Ray," Mr. Dickinson cut in defensively, "but you must understand that Kai is _extremely_ sensitive about this phobia, as much as he tries to hide and deny it. Even just the mention of it can cause him to retreat into himself... He finds it - humiliating..."

At this, the others blinked, confused. Humiliating? Why would Kai be humiliated about being somniphobic? It was nothing to be ashamed of. But then again... if it was nothing to be ashamed of, why hadn't Kai told them earlier? Mr. Dickinson appeared to read their minds.

"Listen," he said, clasping his hands on the table in front of him again, "somniphobia is quite rare, and most somniphobics manage to overcome their fears with the right help. However Kai has seen many psychiatrists over the years, and nothing has been any help to him. There was a period of months a few years ago when he was placed on a high dose of medication to _make_ him fall asleep because he was so reluctant to do so and it was affecting his health."

"But that doesn't explain why he would be embarrassed by his phobia," Max stated still feeling slightly confused.

Mr. Dickinson sighed. "The truth is boys; is that Kai sees it as childish. Look at his personality. For years he has prided himself on his strength and almost fearless nature, but in fact, he is terrified of something which is one of the most natural aspects of life. Sleeping. How easy is it for anyone of you to fall asleep at night?

"The thing which humiliates Kai the most, is the fact that he _knows_ there is nothing to be afraid of. He _knows_ that falling asleep will not cause him any harm. But somewhere deep in his mind, he cannot get over the feelings that if he falls asleep, he will not wake up. That is why he didn't want any of you to know; he thinks that you would no longer respect him for having such a - and I quote - _'pathetic and childish' _phobia."

Eyes locked on his face, Mr. Dickinson prayed they would understand. He found it difficult just talking about this - _issue_ - let alone having to try and explain the unreachable inner layers of Kai's mind. He watched closely as each of the boys were stuck in their own deep thoughts, wondering when and how they would react. Mr. Dickinson was very aware that none of the four would ever dream of using this information against Kai, but he needed their reassurance that they understood exactly why their captain would be so unwillingly to tell them such important things about himself. It was nothing to do with trust. It was all about Kai's insecurities. He was, after all, still a fourteen year old boy with much to learn in life.

"Is - is there anyway we can help?"

Mr. Dickinson jumped slightly, looking up and meeting with Tyson's eyes. The navy-haired teen had been the first to speak up after the long silence. Slowly, the older man shook his head with an exasperated sigh.

"I highly doubt it Tyson," he answered sadly, "Kai has built too many walls up around himself through embarrassment and pride that words barely reach him anymore... maybe - maybe it would be best if you pretended not to know anything."

Mr. Dickinson trailed off and drank the rest of the tea in his cup, remaining silent. With no words spoken, the boys all took this as the end of the conversation. With uncomfortable glances to one another the finished off their breakfast and made the small walk to the training room where they knew Kai would be waiting.

* * *

For the first time since they'd met; Tyson was actually afraid to talk to Kai. Usually when Tyson tried to strike up a conversation with the crimson-eyed captain, it would no doubt end up with Tyson scowling and pouting after a) being answered with a cold/indifferent/sarcastic/hurtful remark or b) getting smacked painfully over the head. However, despite Kai nearly always replying to the younger teen with column a) or column b) (or sometimes both), Tyson had never been _scared_ of Kai. Sometimes he felt a little intimidated or nervous around the older boy, but that wasn't something that would ever stop him pushing his luck with Kai.

Yet, right now, as he watched Kai stand only a few feet from himself, thoughts whirling around in his brain, urging him to say something, Tyson found that his mouth would not open due to fear. What was he afraid of? He cursed himself mentally.

He was scared that if he opened his mouth and tried to speak; he would hurt Kai's feelings.

_Hurt __**Kai's **__feelings._

Before today he had seriously questioned over to whether or not Kai had feelings.

But how, Tyson questioned himself, would Kai react if one of them brought the subject up? How would he feel knowing that Mr. Dickinson had gone against his word and told his team-mates probably his most deepest secret? Tyson shivered. He didn't like to think about the amount of things that would get broken or the amount of ranting Mr. Dickinson would receive or for how long Kai would ignore them afterwards.

Yet, despite all this, Tyson _wanted_ to say something. He _wanted_ to help Kai. And he was pretty sure Kenny, Ray and Max felt the exact same. Tyson had noticed the change in all of them. Kenny was recording their training as usual while summing up all of the data that would be flashing across his laptop round about now, but, the small computer-wizard kept looking up and peering over his laptop at Kai. Max and Ray were both sparing their captain more glances than usual. The same thought running through each of their minds. How is it that _this _person - their cold, unfaltering, indifferent team leader - how was it that he was afraid of going to sleep?

Max seemed to be the one who was watching Kai the most, and Kai had probably picked up on it, however, it was no secret that Max admired Kai in a lot of ways, but instead of yelling at the persistent blonde, Kai allowed his to _look_, as long as he didn't speak. Whether or not Kai had noticed that Max was glancing at him more often than normal, he didn't say anything.

Every time Max's eyes locked on Kai's figure, he felt a plunge of sadness within him. There were so many little things about Kai that he had never noticed before. The dark circles around his eyes for one. They suddenly seemed to stand out remarkably against his pale skin. Also, when Kai thought no one was watching, occasionally he would turn away and stifle a yawn with his palm.

Max had never before realised just _how much_ coffee Kai drank either.

After a very silent and eerie morning of training, the group had returned to the hotel restaurant/buffet room and had dinner at 1pm. They ate mostly in silence. Max sat with his head bowed, his blonde bangs falling over his eyes. He was watching his fork as he slowly played with his food, but every now and again he glanced up at Kai. One cup of coffee. Two cups. Three cups. Fours cups...

_Five_ cups of coffee in the space of an _hour_.

Max cringed as Kai downed the remains from his last cup, and then stood up. He spared his team a look before announcing, "you've got five minutes to finish up."

Ray and Kenny nodded, whilst Max and Tyson barely looked up. Kai left the table with no other words and headed to the training room, vaguely wondering why his normally happy and annoying loud team-mates were so glum. Not once did he suspect that his 'secret' had gotten out.

* * *

When night arrived, that awkward silence was still hanging in the air. There were a few moments when things seemed be more normal, like when Tyson cracked a joke and the others (minus Kai) had laughed. However, only one of them had to glance at Kai for the silence to ensue again. Even Kai sat with a curious raised eyebrow, as the abrupt laughter suddenly stopped with everyone looking at their shoes.

Kai watched as his team-mates climbed into their beds. He noticed how, when one of them were to lock eyes with him, they would look away much quicker than usual. Kai shook his head, and laid down on the sofa, pulling his book out from under the pillow. He switched the lamp that was on the floor next to the sofa on. Stretching out, he opened his book with a little sigh and began to read, wishing for his walkman. He quickly glanced at the clock that was held on the wall behind the TV. It was only eleven-thirty.

He would have assumed that his team-mates had fallen asleep quite quickly, as there was no movement behind him. His eyes flickered to the ceiling as he listened carefully; it was almost an unnatural stillness. They - his team-mates - had been acting completely out of the usual all day. Well, since breakfast anyway. During training, there had been none of that stupid cheerfulness. Tyson hadn't argued back with him at all, he hadn't complained that he was hungry, the he didn't want to run laps or do sit-ups. He just done exactly what Kai had told him to do, first time, no questions. Kai couldn't say that this was a bad things... but it just didn't feel right. He'd gotten so used to having these daily battles with Tyson that they had become routine. He expected them, and he had always enjoyed seeing Tyson splutter incoherently when Kai would put him down.

Kai suddenly tensed when he sensed movement behind him. Very close behind him.

He looked up and, speak of the devil, saw Tyson, stood behind the sofa looking down at him, with... _concern_ in his eyes? Kai sent a glare at him, however, Tyson didn't falter. Instead he moved around the side of the sofa, next to where Kai's head was resting on a cushion and crouched down. Kai frowned. _What the hell was Tyson doing?_

"Kai?" Tyson whispered, only Kai ignored him and went back to his book.

"Kai?"

Kai closed his eyes in annoyance and sighed, "look Tyson, if the light -"

"I don't care about the light, Kai," Tyson said calmly, making Kai look up with a mocking expression. Tyson however, completely ignored this look.

"Kai... why don't you come share my bed?" he said after a while.

The mocking expression on Kai's face turned into one of confusion, but there was also suspicion hiding in those crimson eyes. Kai dropped his book onto the floor and sat up. He glared at Tyson, demanding he explain himself. Tyson, feeling nervous, glanced towards the beds. Kai saw this flicker of the eyes and followed Tyson's glance and saw that Max, Ray and Kenny were all awake and sat up in their beds, watching carefully. Their eyes spoke to Tyson and the Dragon wielder felt reassured, he returned his gaze to Kai, who had fixed his glare back at him. Tyson swallowed.

"Come on, you must be tired..." he said in a voice just above a whisper.

Kai lowered his head a little and peered up at Tyson, trying to find out what his game was. Those stormy eyes... there was concern, worry and determination.

Kai suddenly reeled backwards, shock on his face. Within seconds he understood.

They know. They _know!_

To his right, Max and Ray exchanged looks, but Kai could only stare at Tyson in utter shock. _How_? How did they find out? Why was Tyson looking at him with those eyes? Kai felt his body start to involuntarily shake. There was a lump in his throat and no matter how much he tried to swallow, it would not go down. He almost gasped when Tyson leaned over the arm of the sofa towards him.

"Kai..."

Kai watched as Tyson extended an arm towards him, his fingers stretching out towards his shoulder. For one single moment, Kai felt utterly helpless. His team-mates knew his deepest, most hidden secret. The one thing he was so insecure about... they would never respect him again. _He_ would never respect himself.

Kai slapped Tyson's hand away in one furious swipe. Suppressing a growl, he sent his most vicious glare. He couldn't let this damage his pride.

"Whatever Mr. Dickinson has told you..." he hissed, loud enough for the other three still sat in their beds to hear, "it's _not_ true. He knows nothing, and neither do _you!_"

Kai almost felt himself crumple. _Those eyes! Why are they looking at me like that?!_

Tyson lowered his hand, sadness etched on his face.

"Kai... we don't care, y'know? It doesn't matter to us, we just want to help."

Kai's head snapped to the right, his glare now fixed on Max. The blonde had moved to the end of the bed he shared with Ray and was leaning forward... as though he was reaching out to Kai.

Kai looked away, "I don't know what you're talking about," he said stubbornly, crossing his arms.

Max bit his lower lip. The last thing he wanted was an argument, after all, they were only trying to help. Was this really something that Kai found so hard to accept?

"_Kai is extremely sensitive about this phobia. He finds it - humiliating..."_

As Mr. Dickinson's words floated through his mind, Max watched as a red flush seemed to spread across Kai's face and his jaw tensed as though he was trying to control his blush.

"Kai... we know you're embarrassed -"

"_Embarrassed?!_" Kai snapped, his glare shooting back to Max, who silenced immediately, "who the hell said that?" Kai turned his back on Max and stared at the wall behind the TV instead. "You're talking rubbish."

"Kai please..." Tyson started, "we know all about your phobia and -"

"I don't care! Don't you get it!" Kai stormed, turning to Tyson and looking like he wanted to smack the younger teen, "yes, I'm scared of going to sleep! Are you pleased now that I've said it aloud? Now you can all go and talk and laugh about it! But I don't care!"

Tyson watched wide-eyed and open-mouthed as Kai laid back down, pulled his duvet over his body and switched the lamp off, covering the room in darkness. Although it was impossible to see anything more than silhouettes, Tyson was able to sense the uneasy look that was shared throughout the room.

"Lights off. Happy?"

Tyson bit his bottom lip and inhaled sharply through his nose. He stood up and moved away from the sofa, heading back towards his bed. He cast Kai one final glance.

"Despite what you may think Kai, we're here for you... and whenever you're ready, you can come to bed. I promise you'll wake-up."

* * *

**The ending was a little - what's the word - **_**sappy**_**. **

**And as I said at the beginning of this chapter, this was **_**meant**_** to be the final update. But I just kept rambling on and on. I swear it this time, next chapter WILL be the last. And it shouldn't be very long either. I was going to write the ending in this chapter. But it wouldn't go very well with the mood of this chapter, I wanted a bit of a happy ending.**

**So anyway, please review. I don't know if you'll be happy that there is another chapter, or if you feel it's dragging a bit.**

**Phoenix-Falling**


	4. Chapter 4

**Oh my Lord... this is getting stupid now. IT'S A FIVE-SHOT!**

**I apologise for the HUGE delay on this chapter, I wrote around four pages and then I got that treacherous writers-block. Not happy! But anyway, it's up now and although I've out done myself again and wrote too much, next chapter WILL be the final chapter! (I seriously, honestly, most definitely mean it this time!)**

**Anyway, please review!

* * *

**

Kai awoke the next morning at six to the sound of his alarm clock. He sat up quickly, his heart beating fast, and hurriedly shut the alarm off, not wanting to awaken any of the others. He waited a few seconds until his pounding heart slowed down to a comforting speed, before he made any attempt to move. It was the same every morning when he woke up. There was the sudden panic that swept throughout his body, that could only be cured when he was reassured he was definitely still alive and in the same place where he fell asleep. Then he would always check that no one else had been awake to see him overwhelmed with anxiety.

Kai let out a relived sigh and went to push himself up onto his feet. However, he felt two painful twinges, one through his right leg and the another on the back of his left hand, that forced him to give a small cry of discomfort and freeze where he was.

He pulled a face when he felt the sensation of pins and needles sweep up his right leg. He slowly shifted himself so his feet were on the floor before looking at his left hand. He cringed at the sight of his own dried blood around a patch of red-raw skin.

Last night had been difficult in many ways. Discovering that his team mates had found out about his secret had aroused so many emotions inside of Kai. First had been shock followed closely by panic. Then both fear and anger together. All the while, Kai had felt continuous pangs of betrayal. The only way the other could have found out about his secret was from Mr. Dickinson.

Kai glared at the back of his hand. After he had switched the light off to satisfy Tyson, he found himself becoming drowsy with nothing in the silent darkness to keep his mind preoccupied and awake. So instead he had laid in the most uncomfortable position, all of his lower weight resting on his right leg. However, this still had not been enough to keep him awake, so at about two o'clock in the morning, Kai had started scratching the back of his left hand, even after it became irritated and painful. He'd even managed to break the skin in a few places and drawn blood, but at the time it just didn't seem to matter to Kai; anything to keep him awake.

Kai stood from his bed/sofa and headed to the bathroom. He took a quick shower before putting on a fresh pair of clothes and bandages on his hand. He folded up his duvet from the night and placed on the edge of the sofa before pulling Dranzer out from his bag and putting it safely in his cargo trouser pocket. Kai glanced over to his team-mates once more, it was only 6:45am. He let out a little sigh as his mind trailed over the conversation with Tyson last night, feeling slightly embarrassed again.

'_I don't think I can even face them....'_

Deciding not to hang around any longer, Kai stood up and left the room. It's not like the team would be waking up anytime soon. Normally he would wake them up at seven, just to let them know that it _was_ morning; but he always allowed them an extra hour. Kai glanced at his watch again.

6:47am.

He bit his lip frantically. He was supposed to wake them up in just over ten minutes... but, he didn't - _couldn't_ bring himself to do it. His face heated up just thinking about it. How would he ever be able to captain the team again? How would he be able to keep his ice mask in place.. how could he ever hold their respect when they knew he was...

When they knew he was scared of _sleeping_?

There was nothing more humiliating.

Kai made his way downstairs, his hands stuffed in his pockets, dragging his feet along the floor. More than anything right now, he just wanted to leave the hotel and do his own training, all just to avoid the inevitable meeting with the Bladebreaker's that was bound to happen sometime this day. It was the first time since the Bladebreaker's had left Japan that Kai truly wished he could just go home. Just get on a plane and go back to his life; a life that he had never particularly enjoyed.

Sighing, Kai wandered over to the lobby and sat down, grabbing a random magazine from a glass table in front of him. Usually when he got up at six, he would go for a jog and return at seven to wake the others up. Then he would head to the training room while it was empty, practise for half an hour on his won, before going back up to the room, taking a shower and dragging Tyson at of bed, hopefully before eight. However today, he didn't want to face going back to the room to await the confrontation he _knew_ was going to happen. They were an interfering bunch; the Bladebreakers. Always with the _friendship_ and _loyalty_ and _helping each other out_. It was enough to make a person sick.

Kai idly flicked through a number of magazines that had been spewed across the table, although he did not once pay attention to what he was reading. He only frowned when he realised he picked up one of those 'women's-magazines' and the page he was currently holding open was entitled, '_Fashion-Disasters!' _He chucked the magazine back down on the table, and slumped back wards into the comfy lobby sofa. Crossing his arms, he stared blankly at the ceiling.

He didn't know how long he sat there, but it must have been a while, because suddenly his view of the ceiling was block by Mr. Dickinson's smiling face.

"Good morning, Kai," he said, clapping the teen on the shoulder and moving around to the front of the sofa. He appeared to be his usual cheerful self. "Have you had breakfast?"

"Why did you tell them?" Kai suddenly asked in an emotionless voice, his red eyes fixed on Mr. Dickinson's face, who seemed to pale slightly with that question.

"Kai..." Mr Dickinson started slowly, lowering his head in an almost shameful manner, "I did what I believed to be best."

Kai pulled himself onto his feet, his face twisted with anger, confusion and betrayal. He just stared at the old man for a few seconds, trying to understand what in God's name could have made him believe that this was '_for the best.'_

"If you let them Kai; they could help you. You've just got to let them in..." Mr. Dickinson continued, placing a chubby hand onto Kai's shoulder and giving him a quick, reassuring squeeze.

Kai laughed bitterly, "you mean like the four psychiatrists and all the medication? _Yeah_...what a great help they were!"

Mr. Dickinson sighed. As much as he cared and even _loved_ Kai like the Grandson he'd never had, sometimes this boy was just completely impossible. He wished nothing more that Kai could just accept that he wasn't omnipotent; he _needed_ help and support as much as he seemed to think he didn't. Mr. Dickinson wouldn't deny that Kai was very responsible for his age; the young teen knew perfectly well how to take care of himself. He had been mentally and physically trained since he was a small child, but as much as he tried acting like a grown-up; mature adults were able to admit when they needed help and accept it from the right people. This is where Kai would go wrong. He firmly believed he could live his entire life on his own two feet without any support from others. And we all know that this is impossible; sooner or later, something would give, and Mr. Dickinson could only pray it wouldn't be Kai's sanity.

"I just don't... _understand_ why you had to tell _them_..."

Mr. Dickinson looked back down at Kai's bowed head, barely able to hear his voice which had become very quiet, highly unlike the Kai he knew. Kai took his eyes from his feet and looked up at Mr. Dickinson. His expression was softer, eyes staring at him questioningly. It was something that very rarely showed on Kai's face. He'd always been a master at covering up his emotions, hiding them from the world with an indifferent expression. But now, he looked similar to a regular teenager, struggling to cope with the sudden changes, mental and physical, happening around him and to himself.

"It's _my_ problem, _my_ secret... So why?"

Mr. Dickinson almost felt ashamed of himself hearing the hurt tone in Kai's voice, but he quickly reminded himself that he had done this for a reason. He knew for a fact that the other Bladebreakers were a great bunch, and if anyone, they were the people who could help Kai heal.

"Do you want to live with this phobia forever, Kai?" Mr. Dickinson asked lowering himself down to Kai's level, watching as those crimson eyes flickering softly, hardening slightly with the question.

"I'm surviving aren't I?" he mumbled in response.

Sighing in defeat for now, Mr. Dickinson straightened up and gave Kai's shoulder a little tug, guiding him towards the dining hall.

"Come on, let's have some breakfast."

* * *

Ray rolled over and yawned, feeling pleasantly content and well rested. He opened his eyes, yawning and glanced at his alarm clock. He blinked.

8:11am.

_Ten past - ? Why didn't Kai wake us up?_

He sat up, pushing his bangs out of his face as the rest of his loose hair fell forward over his shoulder and curling onto is lap. Glancing around the room, he noted that Kenny, Max and Tyson were all still asleep, however, Kai appeared to have already left.

Suddenly, Ray slapped his forehead. The events from last night all coming rushing back to him. No wonder Kai hadn't woken them up, he's probably going to avoid them all day. With a weary sigh, Ray swung his legs over the edge of the bed, leaning backwards and shaking Max's shoulder.

"Come on, Maxie," he yawned, "time to get up."

Max's blue eyes slowly opened sleepily, blinking as the sun crept through the open windows straight into his irises. He rolled over to face Ray and stretched out, a couple of his bones cracking.

"Ray?" he asked suddenly.

Ray smiled as he wandered around the bed to wake Kenny, deciding he need as much help as he could get to wake Tyson. He gave Kenny a little shake, while Max glanced around the room, a sad look falling over his face.

"I take it Kai has left already?" he mumbled, as Kenny sat up reaching for his glasses on the bedside table. Ray nodded.

"We'll talk to him later, don't worry," he said, trying to sound reassuring as Max seemed to be taking recent events pretty hard. The blonde nodded but didn't seem to fully convinced by Ray's positive attitude. Ray could only offer a weak smile, moving away from Kenny who was reaching out blindly for his glasses, and going over to Tyson's bed, wondering which would be the most effective method to use for pulling the sleep-loving teen from his bed.

He gripped Tyson's shoulder and gave a rough shake, "Tyson! Come on, breakfast! Get -"

"I'm awake, Ray," Tyson muttered, rolling over as Ray released his shoulder and pushing himself up. He sighed and ran a tanned hand through his hair, pushing the navy bangs out of his face, allowing the others to see the tired expression covering his face, eyes darker than usual.

"You're awake? This is a surprise," Ray commented, as Tyson dragged his palm down his face to cover a yawn.

"Uh huh," he mumbled, swinging his legs over the side of the bed and standing up, stumbling over to the bathroom, "...was just thinking about stuff..."

"Weren't we all," Ray added under his breath.

* * *

Kai sat at their usual breakfast table with Mr. Dickinson, nibbling on a slice of toast, not feeling at all hungry. He dropped the toast back onto his plate and reached for the pot of coffee that sat in the centre of the table.

"Kai..."

Kai froze and glanced at Mr. Dickinson who was watching him sternly. Letting out an irritated sigh, Kai withdrew his arm and picked up the piece of toast again before grudgingly take a bite out of it. He scowled as he chewed.

It was usually like this most mornings. Because of his phobia, Kai often found his eating habits were monitored. Although it was unknown to most, Mr. Dickinson always kept an eye on Kai during meals, making sure he was eating a sufficient amount to keep his energy levels up. Unfortunately for Kai, Mr. Dickinson and himself had very different views of what a 'sufficient amount' is. Kai finished his toast and flashed Mr. Dickinson a look that basically said, '_satisfied?_'

Mr. Dickinson chuckled to himself, sipping his own coffee. He looked up sharply though when he saw the four other members of the Bladebreaker's entering the dining hall. Kai noticed them as well and he quickly poured his coffee and pulled his mug close to himself, keeping his eyes on the table.

The four teenagers made their way to the breakfast buffet table and filled their plates before joining Mr. Dickinson and Kai at their normal circular table. Mr. Dickinson greeted them all with a smile and a '_Good morning_' where as Kai remained staring at the table, head bowed. Tyson and Ray exchanged looks, noticing Kai was avoiding their gaze.

There was silence amongst the six occupants of the table, the only sound was the _'clinking' _of cutlery hitting the plates. Mr. Dickinson had unfolded a newspaper and began reading, silently praying that someone would step up and start a conversation.

After twenty minutes of silence, Tyson put his fork down after finishing his second helping of food. He glanced quickly at Kenny, Max and Ray who had all finished eating around five minutes ago before taking a deep breath and clearing his throat.

"So... are we training now?" he asked, looking at Kai.

Kai looked up sharply, noticing that everyone's (including Mr. Dickinson) eyes were on him. He nodded slowly, before downing the rest of his coffee and standing up, not waiting for anyone else, he began to walking quickly towards the door. The team watched him leave as Mr. Dickinson sighed and folded his newspaper in half and placed it down in Kai's now empty chair.

"I take it you boys told Kai about what you now know?" he asked.

Tyson shifted uncomfortably in his seat, picking up his fork and dabbing it into a pile of ketchup still left on his plate.

"I know you told us to act like we knew nothing..." Tyson began, shifting guiltily and not making eye contact with anyone, but staring at the red liquid he was spreading across his plate, "...but I just couldn't sit there, knowing he was lying only a few feet away terrified of falling asleep. I'm sorry Mr. D."

Mr. Dickinson could only sigh, not with disappointment though.

"If I'm honest Tyson," Mr. Dickinson said pouring himself a cup of coffee, "the reason why I told you to begin with was because a part of me believed you four may be able to help Kai..."

Tyson blinked in surprised looking rather taken back by that comment, as did Ray, Max and Kenny. They each shared a similar look with each other wondering what was on Mr. Dickinson's mind.

"What do you mean by that, Sir?" Ray asked, his eyebrows furrowed with misunderstanding.

Mr. Dickinson dropped a couple of sugar cubes into his cup before stirring the contents slowly, "I believe you boys could help Kai eventually overcome his phobia."

"How on earth would we do that?" Max blurted out quickly, one fine, blonde eyebrow raised with curiosity. "You said Kai has seen psychiatrists over the years and they weren't able to help, so how should we be able to?"

Mr. Dickinson gave another sigh as he dropped his teaspoon back down onto the table. He raised his cup to his lip and took a few small sips, his eyes staring at the wall behind the boys with a distant look. Finally, after what seemed like a life times wait, he spoke.

"Kai has seen four psychiatrists over the years, and all were extremely well educated and cost a fortune to book," Mr. Dickinson began, his eyes flickering quickly over the four boys, who were all listening carefully, attaching themselves to every word he spoke. "However, money was not an issue. Kai's Grandfather, Voltaire, paid for these appointments as he is a multi-millionaire after all."

Mr. Dickinson noted how Tyson, Max and Ray's eyes seemed to widen considerably at hearing this; and Kenny's eyes probably followed suit as well, only a thick mob of brown hair obscured them from view.

Mr. Dickinson cleared his throat before continuing, a saddened expression quickly flashing over his face, "unfortunately, splashing his money around is the way Voltaire seems to deal with most problems concerning his grandson. He paid for Kai to see the psychiatrists but apart from that, he has done nothing to help Kai. Personally, I feel as though Voltaire does not care too much about Kai overcoming his phobia..."

Tyson pulled a disapproving face as he folded his arms on the table and rested his chin upon them. "He doesn't sound like much of a Grandfather to me..." he mumbled, thinking of his own Grandpa.

Mr. Dickinson chuckled humourlessly. "Well, put it this way, Kai and Voltaire have an... _unusual_ relationship. I have never seen much love shared between the two... But that is a different story and it really isn't my place to say.

"The point that I'm trying to get across here is that, I feel, Kai needs to be helped by someone who genuinely _cares_. Not someone who's being paid to get inside his head," Mr. Dickinson concluded.

The table was left in silence as the four young teens pondered over what the chairman had said. Did he really believe that they, of all people, would be able to help someone like Kai? Although none of them had ever spoke it aloud, each of the four had at least once thought that Kai had needed to see a shrink and get his attitude straightened out. After all, never had they met such a young person who could be so anti-social. Could it be that the source of Kai's behaviour was because there hadn't been anyone around who truly _cared_ for him?

"But... but what about _you_, Mr. Dickinson?" Ray asked suddenly, "you obviouslycare about Kai. Why can't you help him? You know him a lot better than we do."

"That's true," Mr. Dickinson answered with a nod before he glanced down at his empty plate on the table, "I care about Kai as though he was my own Grandchild...." he sighed, "I knew his parents very well after all... but for some reason; Kai won't allow me to help. And I've tried more times than you'd ever imagine. Sometimes, just when I feel I may have gotten through to him, he turns a deaf ear on anything I have to say."

Despite what Mr. Dickinson was saying, none of the four teens seemed to be understanding any further about how _they_ were supposed to help Kai. They barely knew him after all. And if Mr. Dickinson failed to help Kai, what good were they?

Mr. Dickinson, sensing the hesitation along with the unsure expressions on their faces, clasped his hands together upon the table. "Listen, I know it may seem like a difficult task, and I don't mean to burden you all with it, considering you have a competition to worry about. But, being within Kai's age group, I feel that you four may be able to help him more than you know... just by being yourselves..."

Silence reigned over the four teens as they pondered over Mr. Dickinson's words. Even as they left the table and headed for the training room, they shared no words with each other, all too caught up in their own thoughts. Max barely allowed his eyes to travel anywhere higher than the floor, and Kenny didn't converse with Dizzi at all throughout their training session.

Ray was the only one in the group who spoke at all, making idle chit-chat about beyblades, and trying half-heartedly to involve Kai, asking pointless questions, like whether or not the team-captain thought Driger needed remodelling, even though everyone knew the white beyblade had only just been touched-up.

Kai answered with nods or shakes of the head and the occasional grunt, refusing to make eye-contact with anyone, although silently thanking his team-mates for not bringing up events of the previous night. However, Kai didn't need to be a mind-reader to know that his four companions were thinking of nothing but him. Every time Ray opened his mouth to ask one of his stupid questions that he already knew the answer to, Kai held his breath, praying Ray wouldn't start questioning _other _things_._

Right from the moment he arrived at the airport on Japan, Kai knew he was _not_ going to enjoy this journey. What with Tyson arriving late and then spending the entire flight to China complaining that he'd forgotten his toothbrush.. Kenny didn't shut up for a second about how much data he would be able to collect and so on. And Max? He _must_ have eaten a bag of sugar before they left because he was practically bouncing in his seat, laughing disturbingly loudly at the on-flight film being shown, grating every single one of Kai's nerves.

But despite all of this, Kai had managed to survive the past six weeks without once fully loosing his temper. He'd had a few moments of '_Right-take-a-deep-breath-and-count-to-ten'_ but there had been no deaths yet so that must mean this journey was going better that he imagined, right?

If only that were so.

When evening came again, Kai honestly felt sick. He stared at his untouched plate with distaste, just the smell of food was making his stomach turn uncomfortably. The sound of chatter from his team-mates - who appeared to have regained their voices within the last hour - sounded distant and he could feel Mr. Dickinson's eyes watching him as he played with the food on his plate with his fork. Kai knew Mr. Dickinson was generous enough to him not to say anything. Both knew very well that receiving a lecture on his eating habits in front of his team-mates would probably kill Kai through humiliation - and he had had enough of that already. But Kai also knew that Mr. Dickinson would not let him get away without eating dinner.

So, after pulling a very sour face, he scooped up a forkful of food and ate it with disdain. His stomach churned unpleasantly, and he struggled to force his body not to heave. It was like chewing on cardboard he noted and the ball of food in his mouth did not seem to be getting any smaller or easier to swallow.

After what felt like ages, Kai finally did manage to swallow and he couldn't help the bitter look descending onto his face. He could feel the awful lump of food slowly moving down past his throat, and it was already causing his stomach to revolt. He closed his eyes and suppressed a groan, knowing what was about to happen.

"I'm done," Kai mumbled, pushing his plate away, and - avoiding Mr. Dickinson's gaze - stood from his chair and left the room; not once glancing back.

Kai didn't waste any time in heading straight to the male restroom in the lobby. Apart from walking at a quickened pace, to anyone else he looked completely normal. Holding himself upright, face blank and eyes focused ahead, he calmly pushed open the door to the restroom, and - after making sure no one else was there - he went inside the end cubicle and closed the door behind him.

Dropping to his knees and scrapping his slate bands out of his face; he relaxed his mind and allowed his body to take over naturally. Abdomen tensing, he heaved; the contents of his stomach shooting up and emptying into the toilet bowl. The muscles in his throat worked overtime, tensing and tightening as he strained to force out all of stomachs rejected mass. His eyes watered uncontrollably, and he found himself unable to stop the awful retching sounds escape his lips.

Even after his stomach had satisfied itself and was now emptier than it had been before; Kai stayed in the same kneeling position for a few minutes, sucking air into his deprived lungs. Slowly, he dared to open his eyes, everything appearing blurry for a few seconds before his view became sharper as his body recovered. As it did, he allowed his left hand to drop to the floor, his slate bangs flopping down in front of his eyes; before he made to stand up - which proved a lot more difficult than he anticipated.

As soon as he tried to stand, his vision was patched with blackness and his head suddenly felt very light.

Kai knew very well what exhaustion felt like; he knew it oh-too-well. Whenever he sat down, it became a struggle to stop his mind from shutting down and drifting into oblivion. He relied on food to give him enough energy to stop himself collapsing. But even that - at times - was not enough. It was his pride that kept him standing.

Some people did not understand the full effect of living with a phobia. There were physical restrictions placed around Kai's life, tasks were harder to complete when his body was so weary and exhaustion was a very common occurrence. That aside, Kai had to cope, every single day, with the fear and dread that fell upon him when the night hours were approaching.

And he hated himself for it. Kai loathed himself for being afraid of something so trivial; something so _natural_.

The weight of carrying around the effects of his phobia was enough to cause him to fall to his knees. It was his pride - which he clung to desperately - which held him up. The thought of slipping up and falling in front of other people was Kai's worst nightmare; it was unacceptable.

Grudgingly accepting that for now he was unable to do anything about his current situation, Kai reached out and pulled the toilet lid down before folding his arms upon it and burying his face in them. He closed his eyes and simply relaxed, allowing his body to recuperate. However, an ache resided in his chest - not painful - but it pulled at his heart, plaguing him with distress and apprehension. He _would_ have to face the music sooner or later; accept Kai was determined to make it _later.

* * *

_

**Argh, God! This story is simply going to never end!**

**I can't really ask for much apart from your patience with me... and maybe a review...? Pretty please!**

**I will get the LAST (as in final, no more after that, the end, goodbye) up soon, and that is a promise.**

**Phoenix-Falling**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello again everyone! Sorry for yet another delay on this story. I have little spare time on my hands now I'm working full-time; but mostly I guess I've just been lacking in motivation.**

**Thanks to everyone for all the reviews! Reviews will make me smile :D

* * *

**

Kai gave another irritated sigh.

He was sitting on the couch in the hotel lobby and had been doing so for at least a couple of hours. There were no magazines for him to read this time around - not that they were exactly _enjoyable_ - so he had taken to watching the hotel occupants come and go.

Four young women - wearing high heels and short, shiny dresses - strolled past him at that moment; linking arms with one another and giggling uncontrollably. Kai watched them with disinterested as they walked through the revolving front entrance to the hotel. Just as they left, three young men came stumbling through the door, two of the appeared to be holding the one in the middle up. Each arm slung over his companions shoulders, his legs were going all over the place, and his head was drooped - resting on his chest.

Kai found himself wondering what it felt like to be that drunk. To be so hammered you could barely think straight let alone walk. He'd never had a single sip of alcohol in his entire life; the thought of loosing control over himself was something of a nightmare to Kai... But at times like these, when his thoughts were spiralling out of control and he wanted nothing more but to run; the idea of numbing his senses down to nothing seemed rather tempting.

Kai suppressed another sigh - he'd done that too much over the last couple of days. No matter how tempting the idea of throwing himself head-first into a blissful drunken state was; he would never do it. He'd never allow himself to risk loosing himself from reality.

Plus, he'd heard that the hangovers next morning could be total killers.

The three young men wobbled over to the lift, rocking backwards and forwards as they walked, grunts of laughter escaping them as they slurred unfathomable words to each other. Kai raised a fine eyebrow at them. It wasn't even ten o'clock yet.

Kai groaned to himself. Not even ten o'clock? This day truly couldn't go any slower.

Yes, Kai is still avoiding his team-mates. He didn't know if they came looking for him after he hurriedly left the dinner table to not-so-gracefully hurl his stomach contents down the toilet bowl; but if they did, they hadn't looked very hard. When he'd finally been able to stand without his legs turning to jelly, Kai had simply thrown himself down on the couch he was currently sitting on and had stayed there up until this very moment in time. His plan was: that hopefully by the time he decided to go upstairs, the rest of his team would be asleep.

Hell, he was willing to stay in the lobby all night if he had to.

Unfortunately, that idea was crushed as soon as it came. Kai's eyes ripped themselves away from watching the three drunk young men when he heard someone drop themselves down onto the sofa opposite him. He prepared himself to throw this unwelcome person a ferocious glare - there were at least four other empty sofa's scattered around the lobby, why the hell did they choose to come sit with him?

However, the glare fixed on his face dropped immediately seeing Mr. Dickinson sat opposite him. _How on earth does he keep sneaking up on me?_ Kai thought, curious as to how - twice in one day - Mr. Dickinson had seemingly appeared out of nowhere to greet him.

His thoughts were soon pushed aside as he registered the stern expression Mr. Dickinson was wearing. On the table now sat a plate with two sandwiches. Kai closed his eyes and turned away; the thought of food making him want to throw up again.

"Kai."

Mr. Dickinson's voice was no longer held its usual cheerful note. Instead, he sounded like a strict school teacher who had just caught you cheating on a test. Kai opened his eyes and flickered them over Mr. Dickinson's form. He looked almost angry, and Kai knew he was about to get a good finger-wagging.

"Kai," Mr. Dickinson spoke again, his voice louder and clearer and now, and Kai - with an irritated _'leave-me-alone'_ huff - swivelled around and slump against the back of the couch with his arms folded over his chest and a scowl on his face. Usually this behaviour would produce a light-hearted chuckle from the older man; but not today. Mr. Dickinson's pressed his lips together so they appeared no more thicker than a pencil drawn line.

"I don't know what you think you're playing at, Kai," Mr. Dickinson lectured, looking very miffed, "but it stops here. I can't _believe_ you didn't eat your dinner. Before we even left for China, you made a _promise_ to me that you wouldn't skip meals. You're going to make yourself _very poorly!_"

Kai noted each word Mr. Dickinson emphasized in hopes that this would get through to him.

It was true. Kai had promised he would eat at every meal like a good boy and that he would have a few snacks in-between so Mr. Dickinson could sleep easy at night knowing the team captain wouldn't collapse from exhaustion in the middle of the bey-stadium. So far he had kept to his word. But... _make-himself-poorly?_

Kai felt purely frustrated at that.

'_I already am sick!'_ Kai thought but did not say, _'because __**you**__ couldn't keep your mouth shut; I'm sick with stress!'_

"Now," Mr. Dickinson continued, forcing authority in his voice, something with sounded rather unnatural coming from the friendly, porky old man. "I want you to eat those sandwiches."

Kai's eyes flickered to the sandwiches sat on the plate on the table before fixing them once more on Mr. Dickinson's face. His frown deepened, disliking the way Mr. Dickinson was ordering him around. Who did he think he was? His _Grandfather!_

"No, _Stanley_. I won't," Kai answered simply with a small sneer, partially just wanting to annoy.

Mr. Dickinson's expression darkened somewhat, he looked almost _resentful_ of Kai. But he was not a man to loose his temper so easily. Mr. Dickinson stood up sharply, surprising Kai by the sudden movement, walked around the table and sat himself next to the teen.

Kai almost smirked, thinking this was all Mr. Dickinson would do. He got a shock, however, when Mr. Dickinson seized his upper arm and tugged him up from his slouched position so he was sat upright. Kai blinked, astounded, his eyes fixed on the spot where Mr. Dickinson was gripping his arm. His expression hardened rapidly as he realised he did not like the way he was being held. However, even as he jerked his arm trying to loosen the grip, Mr. Dickinson did not let go which earned him a rather vicious glare from Kai's end.

"Let go -"

"You have a choice," Mr. Dickinson hissed, successfully silencing the teen, "you can sit here for another couple of hours, only _if_ you eat those sandwiches. If not, you're going upstairs and to bed, _right now!_"

Crimson orbs widened considerably. For a moment, Kai felt slightly helpless, almost hurt by Mr. Dickinson's words. He was used to other people yelling at him. Hell, it was the only thing his Grandfather did when he wasn't ignoring Kai. He was used to giving and receiving abuse from other teenagers on the street because '_they-didn't-like-his-attitude_' and he knew very well his team-mates complained that he was a grouch and a slave driver.

But Mr. Dickinson never snapped at him. He received a few telling-offs from the team manager, but Mr. Dickinson was more likely to chuckle at his antics and attempt to ruffle his hair.

At this moment, Kai felt most of the fight leave his body. He was more-or-less willing to do whatever Mr. Dickinson wanted, but...

Kai only had to glance at the sandwiches sat on the table and he felt his stomach twist uncomfortably. He had no appetite, despite his empty stomach. and the back of his throat was still painful burning. But he didn't want to go upstairs either, and Mr. Dickinson knew he didn't want to face his team-mates. He'd much prefer to sit here in the lobby and _lick his wounds._

Although completely lacking the energy, Kai forced himself to his feet and violently tugged his arm from Mr. Dickinson's grip.

"I'm going to bed!" He snarled, marching towards the stairs, leaving Mr. Dickinson behind wearing a look of surprise that said he had expected Kai to eat rather than go to bed.

Kai got to the staircase and slowed down his pace, his breath coming out in short, terrible, ragged gasps. He gripped the banister tightly and heaved himself up the first few stairs. It was here he began to fee light-headed, and he promised himself if he made it to the first floor, he'd get the lift the rest of the way.

You may ask why he didn't get the elevator on the ground floor?

The answer s tat he wouldn't have allowed himself to do so. He had stormed off angrily and the whole effect would have been ruined if he'd had to stand and wait for the lift to arrive for 5 minutes.

Sweat-bedding his forehead, Kai vaguely wondered if his pride sometimes caused him too much trouble?

* * *

Tyson was sitting on the sofa in the room the Bladebreakers were sharing. Although only just gone 10pm, the other - minus Kai - had already climbed into their beds, though Tyson was unsure if they were actually asleep yet.

Personally, he wanted to wait for Kai to come back before he allowed himself to sleep. He didn't know what he was going to say to the older teen, and he definitely did not want to start another argument... but after speaking with Mr. Dickinson today; Tyson felt like he needed to _do_ something.

He wasn't a miracle worker, or a psychiatrist and he had no idea how on earth you were supposed to help someone overcome a severe phobia. But he wasn't going to allow himself to just push everything they'd leant about Kai over the last few days away. Finally, he'd seen a side to Kai he never thought he would see. The vulnerable, insecure side. And he'd be damned if he let Kai down.

Tyson glanced at the clock on the wall again. '_22:13_,' it read.

He gave a sigh as he leaned back on the sofa, eyes fixed on the ceiling. You'd think he'd use this time to - I don't know - prepare how he will react when Kai comes back; make a speech maybe. But Tyson was never the time to prepare himself. He always preferred racing on ahead with enthusiasm and a bit of luck, hoping for the best.

* * *

By the time Kai had reached the room the Bladebreakers were staying in; he thought he was going to collapse. With his forehead resting against the doorframe, Kai tried to focus his eyes and shake away the black spots eating up his vision. Once again, he was panting hard and it was a hard struggle to keep himself on his feet. Kai began to dread thinking about how he was going to keep himself awake for the next few hours.

At least he had one thing to feel positive about: he could hear no sound from inside the room and he dared to hope that maybe all his team-mates were already sound asleep in bed.

Kai raised his wrist and took a look at his watch. Almost 10:43pm! His eyes widened slightly. _How long have I been stood outside this door?_ Kai asked himself, stunned.

Slowly, he pushed himself of off the doorframe and straightened himself up, ignoring the fact that his vision was still a little blurry and nibbled at by darkness. He took out his card key from his pocket and - being at silent at he could - dragged it through the card-lock and opened the door.

The first sound that Kai made was an unhappy groan when he noticed the lamp on the coffee table was still on, and sat on the sofa was none other that Tyson.

Tyson jumped at the sound of the door opening, his heart picking up speed. He knew the only person it could be was Kai, but he still felt utterly relieved just to see him in the flesh. If only Kai returned to feelings, though Tyson was not discouraged, even when he heard Kai groan irritably after seeing him.

"Kai..." Tyson breathed, standing up and walking around the sofa, allowing his eyes to fully wander over Kai's rather exhausted looking form. Tyson's eyebrows knotted together as Kai seemed to stumble closer, his eyes a little unfocused. "Kai...? Are you okay?"

Kai did not answer, but he inhaled shakily.

'_Too hot,' _Kai thought, the heat of the room sweeping over him, too quickly, far, far too hot. _'Jeez, why is it so hot? I need - I need to open... open a window. Yeah...'_

Kai pressed a hand to his forehead, panic sweeping over him as his vision went from bad to worse. He tried to shake it away, but if anything, that just made him loose his balance.

He reopened his eyes - not realising he had shut them - to see a fuzzy blob in front of him. Kai squinted, only making out a huge splash of yellow that was almost blinding him and a mass of navy close to his eye-level. He numbly felt a hand give his arm a nervous stroke.

'_Oh God... Tyson, move please! I need air!'_

Kai heard Tyson's hushed voice faze in then out, as though he was listening to a badly tuned radio and couldn't find the right frequency. He dimly noted that above the boiling heat, his skin felt damp and he believed he must have been sweating.

"Kai! _Kai!_ Dude, are you okay?"

'_Yes... yes Tyson! I'm fine! Please, just move!'_

No matter what, Kai couldn't seem to find the energy to actually speak. And he had absolutely no idea where this weariness had come from. Sure, he felt exhausted while he was in the lobby. But... he felt ready to collapse now!

To think, only half an hour ago he had been sat wondering what if felt like to be drunk... was this it? Is this how it felt? His limbs felt heavy and sluggish, and his eyes were drooping shut every five seconds - not that it really mattered he could barely see a thing anyway - and he wanted nothing more than to fall onto the most comfortable things around.

'_Nnngh, I wish I just eaten those damn sandwiches!'_

"Kai, dude, you're really freaking me out now!" Tyson said, as quietly as he could although he was slowly becoming hysterical. He was holding Kai by his upper arms but the slate-haired teen didn't seem to notice; it didn't even seem like Kai could here Tyson speaking. "Come on... say _something_!"

Tyson watched as Kai's nervously licked his lips, his pink tongue quickly flicking out as he blinked rapidly. Finally, in a voice very unlike his own, Kai spoke.

"I'm fine."

Tyson dropped his arms back down to his sides and bit his lip frantically. Kai was anything _but_ fine, he looked completely worn down with fatigue and he was swaying on the spot.

After a few seconds trying to gather his thoughts and energy, Kai attempted to walk forwards as if nothing had happened... only as soon as placed his weight upon it; his right leg gave out and he felt himself fall forward.

For a moment, Kai lost all sense. He couldn't feel, hear, see, smell or taste anything. He couldn't process any of his thoughts, until that sudden sensation of falling stopped. Only then did he realise what had happened.

Heat and colour swam to Kai's cheeks quicker than blinking.

'_I fell... I __**fell**__!!! I fell and Tyson caught me. Oh no no no!'_

He could have spent to the rest of eternity denying it and trying to convince himself that reality wasn't happening, but it was. Even now, he could hear Tyson's panic stricken voice whispering frantically in his ear, begging him to speak.

"Let go!" Kai gasped, trying to push himself away from Tyson. Except Tyson was the main reason why he was still standing, his legs felt like jelly, and if Tyson were to unlock his arms from around his torso; then Kai would surely hit the ground.

"Kai! Stop squirming!" Tyson hissed, worry etched in his voice as Kai tried to push away from him but he was tripping over his own feet at the same time.

To anyone watching; it would have looked like Tyson and Kai were clumsily attempting to dance. Tyson had his arms locked over and around Kai's arms and back, while Kai was pushing his hands against Tyson's chest in hopes he may get free from the embrace. Both of them were tripping and swaying as they fought to gain control of the situation.

"Get _off!_" Kai cried, snapping his eyes shut as the swirling colours began to make his head feel even more light. His legs wobbled and gave way again, causing Tyson to grip the back of his tank-top to stop him dropping to the floor.

Seeing the opportunity, Tyson dragged Kai over towards his bed at the end of the room, glancing quickly at his other team-mates who were still sleeping soundly in their beds - how on earth they'd slept through all the commotion was anyone's guess.

"Kai, you're _exhausted_ man!" Tyson stammered out, still hauling Kai's uncooperative body, "you need to lie down!"

Kai moaned out what sounded like a '_no!_' But Tyson ignored it anyway. Finally, he made it over to the bed and inelegantly threw both of them sideways down onto the mattress. Once down, Tyson unlocked his arms from around Kai's body and rolled onto his back, panting from the scuffle. Kai didn't fare any better. The older teen lay still in the same position, the only movement was his chest rising and falling rapidly as he breathed hard.

Tyson rolled his head to the right, his breathing coming down to a comforting speed, and watched as Kai painfully struggled to push himself up. His muscles were taut under his skin and his arms were trembling; he hadn't even opened his eyes.

Realising that the battle wasn't over yet, Tyson heaved himself up into a sitting position.

"Kai..." he began in a pleading voice, "just lie down, you need to sleep."

Kai shook his head furiously, angered by the simple suggestion. But Tyson didn't give up. Leaning forwards, he grabbed Kai by his upper-arms and dragged him up the bed so his head was above the pillow.

"Kai... Kai, I know you're afraid..." Tyson said in a small voice, "b-but you _need_ to. You can't keep this up."

Kai flung his arm out in attempt to bat Tyson away and narrowly missed hitting his face.

"Shut _up!_" Kai growled, his head bowed, glaring at the pillows beneath him from his kneeled position, "I can handle it, _okay?_ I don't need help from anyone, especially _you!_"

Tyson knew he shouldn't have expected any other comeback remark from Kai, but it still hurt him to hear those things. But what was the point in arguing back against Kai? He was the most stubborn person in the world, right?

"_No!_ You listen here, Almighty Captain!" Tyson snapped in a low tone, jabbing his finger into Kai's forehead and watching as those crimson eyes boiled over with fury. "No matter what you seem to think, _you're not God_, okay? You're human, just like the rest of us, and you get tired, _just like the rest of us!_

"I know you probably feel separated from us because of your phobia. And just because we want to help doesn't mean we see you as some kind of charity case!"

Tyson sucked air in-between his teeth, his sudden rant left his breathless. Kai had pushed himself up fully now and was sat opposite Tyson with a glare fixed on his features.

"You. Can't. Help." Kai growled, turning his back on Tyson, "I don't care what you think of me, but stop pumping yourself up already, because it's useless."

"Have you ever even let anybody _try_ to help?" Tyson asked, in a much quieter voice this time, all anger evaporating leaving him feeling worn out. "We may not be the best of pals, Kai. But I care about you, and so do the rest of the team. And Mr. Dickinson cares as well, and we all get worried when we see you torturing yourself like this -"

"Shut _UP!"_ Kai snapped, his fingers violently gripping the bed covers and his head slumping forward onto his chest. "What the hell do you know, huh? You don't understand!"

"Well... maybe - maybe I don't _need_ to understand," Tyson began, his voice becoming almost desperate now as he leaned forward wishing he could urge Kai to accept him. "I don't _need_ you to... to tell me all your secrets! Or become Mr. Sociable with the team - 'cause if you did that'd just be scary - but, just let me _help_... please?" Tyson begged in a tiny voice, though somehow, he seemed to have shuffled himself much closer to where Kai sat now. So close in fact he only needed to whisper for Kai to hear him.

"I know you're scared," Tyson whispered, unable to see Kai cringe as he uttered the word '_scared_' "but you're completely exhausted. And - and I'll stay up all night if that's what I have to do, but you _need_ to get some sleep."

Kai's knuckles had turned white as he fisted the sheets again. He shook his head a little.

"No.." he breathed, and Tyson's eyes widened slightly in surprise hearing Kai's voice so faint and frail. "No, I can't... I w-won't wake up..."

Tyson couldn't help himself. He closed the small gap between their bodies and threw his arms around Kai's shoulders, hugging him from behind. Kai immediately tensed and squirmed, trying to pull himself from Tyson's grip; but Tyson did not let go. If anything he squeezed his arms tighter, burying his face into the back of Kai's neck.

The sudden confession from Kai - one which portrayed his true feelings, his true fear in such a short sentence - it was almost heartbreaking. Tyson knew that Kai hated sympathy, but it's all he could feel.

"You _will_ wake up, Kai," Tyson insisted, his voice slightly muffed as he was talking through Kai's hair, "and I _will_ stay awake all night to make sure of it. Just believe me, you will wake up."

"But _they_ d-didn't wake up..." Kai answered in a fragile tone, his voice breaking off a little at the end.

Tyson hugged Kai tighter. He tried to speak but he just choked on a sob.

'_Kai... you're parents were sick. That's why they died. You know this. But you're not sick... at least not yet. If you carry on the way you're going though...'_

After what felt like a life-time stuck in the same position - Tyson kneeling behind Kai with his arms thrown round his shoulder and Kai sat with one leg hanging over the side of the bed with his head bowed - Tyson loosened his arms and shuffled around so he was sat next to Kai.

"I'll stay awake all night," Tyson whispered, trying to catch Kai's eyes with his own, "and if at any point something goes wrong; I'll wake you up. I promise."

Kai inhaled sharply, his shoulders shaking. He was beyond exhausted, his body needed rest, yet his still mind said _'no'_. But, even if he turned his back on Tyson now, he wouldn't be able to keep himself awake. Even now his eye lids were drooping and he was using all his remaining energy just to keep them up.

Kai couldn't believe he was even contemplating Tyson's offer.

But... if he were to fall asleep, he'd rather do it knowing that Tyson was watching over him.

Kai took a deep breath before answering weakly; "all night?"

Tyson nodded determinedly. "Yes."

"You promise?"

Tyson reached out and placed his hand on Kai's shoulder, and the older teen finally took his gaze away from the floor to look him in the face. Midnight blue met fiery red.

"I promise."

There was a long silence in which time Tyson waited patiently as Kai chewed his lip nervously.

"...Okay," Kai answered so timidly it came out sounding a bit like a squeak.

Tyson nodded encouragingly as Kai kicked off his shoes and unbuckled his arm-guards. He didn't have the energy to get changed, so after Tyson shuffled over to the other side of the bed, Kai just pulled back the sheets and climbed under them. Tyson dropped his red jacket onto the floor and - having already taken off his shoes and cap - hurriedly scrambled over to the lamp on the coffee table and switched it off, covering the room in darkness. Only a single strip of light made it's way into the room through the gap in the curtains.

Kai lay still, listening to Tyson blindly make his way back to their bed, knocking into a couple of things on the way. Tyson found the bed with his hands and also climbed under the sheets, however, unlike Kai, he did not lie down. Instead he piled his pillows up against the headboard and leaned back upon them.

Neither of them spoke at all.

Tyson suddenly yawned. He placed a hand over his mouth and blinked tiredly, wishing more than anything he could have just gone to sleep. He found himself wondering if - after Kai had fallen asleep - he could catch a few hours as well. All he had to do was wake up before Kai and pretend he been awake through the whole night.

However, Kai didn't look like he'd be falling asleep right this second. He was lying on his side facing Tyson, his eyes wide open, staring ahead of him. His heart was pounding hard in his chest and although he tried to tell himself to calm down; he simply couldn't.

Time ticked by and still Kai couldn't allow himself to fall asleep. He felt exhausted but panic was sweeping through his body and possessing his mind. He lifted his head ever so slightly off the pillow and glanced over Tyson's body to see the digital clock on the bedside cabinet, it's red, glowing numbers saying _'23.46'_.

Kai's eyes widened. It wasn't even midnight yet! And...

Kai's heart rate picked up again as he noticed that Tyson was completely still and his breathing was shallow.

'_He's fallen asleep!'_

Kai began breathing so hard his chest was shuddering with each gasp. His eyes scanned through the darkness in a panicked state. He couldn't believe Tyson had fallen asleep! He'd _promised_!

Kai tried to calm himself down but he couldn't. He was scared - no! He was terrified. After all these years, he'd come to believe that the longer he slept for, the more likely it was that he wouldn't wake up. That's why he rarely went to sleep before 3am, and he'd wake up around 7am, sometimes earlier.

So what was he supposed to do _now?_ He barely had the energy to keep himself awake, and now Tyson wouldn't be there in case...

Kai scrunched his eyes up, his breath hitching as he tried to contain a sob.

'_I'm going to die!'_

"Kai...?"

Kai's eyes snapped open as the voice and he raised his head off of the pillow, his eyes searching for Tyson's.

"Kai... are you still awake?" Tyson breathed, leaning forward so the stream of light from the gap in the curtains caught his face. Kai breathed out in relief.

"Tyson, I-I thought you fallen -"

"I promised, Kai."

Kai nodded, allowing his head to drop back down onto the pillows. He could still feel Tyson's eyes on his face, and although he still felt scared... although there were still voices in his head speaking of disaster - Tyson had _promised._

And now, Kai felt as though he'd never believed in something so much as he did that promise. So finally, he relaxed and closed his eyes; sleep only waiting around the corner.

* * *

Max was the first to wake up next morning. Sitting up with a yawn and stretching his arms out to the ceiling, feeling fully refreshed.

The first thing Max did was give Ray a playful dig in the spine, which caused Ray to awaken with a yelp of surprise. He seized his pillow, sat up quickly and threw it at the blonde-haired teen. Only Max - well known for his great defence - swiped at it with his arm, causing the fluffy sack of feathers to fly over his head and land on top of Kenny instead; the computer wizard waking with a groan.

Max sniggered as the Kenny reached out for his glasses, mumbling out, "wha' time isit?"

"Seven: twenty-five."

Max and Ray blinked in surprise, and Kenny - once having found his glasses - turned to see Tyson sat up in his bed, slouching against his stacked up pillows; his eyes looking rather dark and blood-shot.

"Wow, Tyson... you look like death!" Max commented.

Tyson raised his palms and dragged them down his face. "Thanks, Maxie. I love a compliment in the morning."

"What's up Ty?" Ray asked, rocking onto his knees, "didn't you get much sleep last -"

Ray froze in the middle of his sentence as he saw Kai, _asleep_, on the other side of Tyson. Max and Kenny both glanced at Ray, confused, before lifting themselves higher with curiosity to see what he was looking at. They both let out a small startled gasp when they saw Kai. Tyson gave a little smile.

"I made him a promise," Tyson said in a tired voice, "if he went to sleep, I'd stay up and make sure he was okay. I knew that nothing would happen to him, but I wanted to prove that to him."

Ray smiled at him, "well done, Tyson!"

"Yeah, nice one!" Max added, "I guess Mr. Dickinson was right giving us - well _you_ - the job!"

Tyson shook his head.

"It wasn't really a _job_," Tyson said, glancing as Kai's sleeping form, "I guess I just really wanted to help him."

Ray smiled fondly, "well I guess we can help him too by getting ready for training. He'll probably have a heart-attack when he finds out everyone is awake before him."

Max, Ray and Kenny climbed out of their beds and within half an hour were leaving the room and heading down for breakfast. They closed the door with a sharp snap, and Tyson jumped when he heard a surprised gasp from next to him.

Crimson eyes shot open and Kai's body lurched slightly, his hand shooting up to clutch his heart.

"Morning."

Kai looked up to see Tyson smiling as him, and for a moment Kai felt confused about the whole scenario. If was only a matter of seconds before all the previous nights events came back to mind though, and Kai felt a wave of gratitude wash over him. This was probably the most refreshed he's felt in a long time.

He pushed himself up into a sitting position and ran a hand through his slate bangs.

"What time is it?" Kai asked.

Tyson glanced to the side to look at the digital clock, "nearly eight."

Kai's eyes widened. He had over eight hours sleep!

"The others are all awake," Tyson continued, slumping back and closing his tired eyes, "they've gone for breakfast and then they're going to the training room."

He peeked open an eye as he felt Kai stand from the bed. He watched as Kai wandered over to couch where his bag was sat and took out some shampoo and shower gel. Tyson closed his eye again and settled himself down comfortably into the mattress.

No sooner had he gotten comfortable when he felt a pillow slam against the side of his face. He jumped up sharply, knocking the offending pillow onto the floor to see Kai stood in front of him, frowning, with one hand on his hip.

"You better get your lazy arse up too," Kai said firmly with a raised eyebrow, "trainings starts in half an hour."

Tyson's jaw dropped open in disbelief.

"_What!?!_ Are you -? You can't be!" Tyson stammered, he pointed his finger at the spot where Kai had been sleeping. "I've just stayed awake _all night_. For you! You can't possibly -"

"I was joking, Tyson," Kai interrupted smoothly, turning his back and heading towards the bathroom, leaving Tyson to gape at him open-mouthed.

"Oh."

Kai pushed open the bathroom door, but stopped when before he went inside. He turned halfway, and raised his head a little, but glued his eyes to the floor.

"Tyson?" he said quietly.

"Yeah?"

"...Thanks," Kai mumbled, "for... that..." He trailed off awkwardly, refusing to meet Tyson's gaze.

Tyson smiled happily, "anytime, Kai."

Kai looked up, tilting his head as Tyson continued to smile at him. Could this be the beginning of a beautiful friendship?

"Tyson," Kai said sharply, and Tyson's smile faltered a little at the tone of Kai's voice. "Just so you know. Everything that's happened over the past twelve hours; _none_ of it means that we are _friends_, okay?"

Tyson bowed his head a little, but the smile had reformed on his face.

"Sure, Kai. Whatever you say."

Tyson didn't miss the similar looking smile that Kai was wearing as he closed the bathroom door either.

* * *

**So... yeah. The End.**

**...**

**Wow.**

**This is a first for me. I've been sat here for about ten minutes just tapping my keyboard thinking, **_**"Oh... I'm done."**_

**Just so you know. Kai has **_**not**_** overcome his phobia. But he's taken his first step.**

**So, I guess all I can really say if, I hope everyone enjoyed this - **_**what was supposed to be a one-shot, turned into a two-shot, turned into a three-shot, turned into a four-shot and then turned into a five-shot **_**- story. And, erm, yeah. Please review!**

**Phoenix-Falling**


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